Bioprotective cultures are used as alternatives to chemical preservatives in different food applications. In dairy products, contamination with yeast and molds may limit the shelf life of the dairy products. One product area experiencing significant yeast and mold contamination problems includes fresh cheeses.
Bioprotective solutions to overcome these problems have been developed by the dairy industry. Some of the most well-known and probably most commonly used antifungal bioprotective solutions on the market are the HOLDBAC™ YM-b and HOLDBAC™ YM-C cultures from Danisco that both contain combinations of subspecies of Propionibacteria and Lactobacillus. 
The use of propionic acid bacteria together with lactic acid bacteria for inhibition of microorganisms has been disclosed in the patent applications US 2005/0095318 and WO 2004/041305.
Propionibacteria ssp. are believed to contribute to the antifungal activity mainly through the production of propionic acid but also through the production of acetic acid and other metabolites.
However, these species are rather costly to produce in an industrial scale and the production of propionic acid may cause unwanted sensory properties in the final dairy products.
Other antifungal bioprotective solutions on the market for dairy products include Lyofast LPRA from SACCO as well as Aroma-Prox®RP80 from BIOPROX. Both of these products contain combinations of Lactobacillus plantarum and Lactobacillus rhamnosus. 
Tharmaraj and Shah (2009) describe the screening for bioprotective lactic acid bacterial candidates for cheese-based dips. All strains of Lactobacillus rhamnosus and Lactobacillus paracasei tested as single strains showed maximum inhibitory effect against yeasts and molds. However, no combinations of Lactobacillus rhamnosus and Lactobacillus paracasei were examined.
Thus, there is an industrial need to develop improved bioprotective solutions which omit Propionibacteria ssp. without compromising the antifungal effectiveness.